JEDDAH: UK companies are set to gain from a $6.8 billion Saudi project pipeline under a partnership between the UK export credit agency and the Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund.
PIF and UK Export Finance, or UKEF, have signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen financial cooperation and expand trade and investment opportunities between the UK and Saudi Arabia, according to a joint statement.
Through the MoU, the agency will partner with PIF and its portfolio companies to access a pipeline of existing and prospective projects that, “if backed with UKEF financing, will offer numerous supply contracts for UK-based suppliers,” the release said.
Saudi Arabia and the UK are deepening economic ties, with bilateral trade reaching $21.6 billion in 2023 and a joint target of $37.5 billion by 2030, supported by ongoing UK GCC Free Trade Agreement talks and the UK’s GREAT Futures campaign.
Investment flows remain robust, with Saudi Arabia investing more than $21 billion in the UK since 2017, including $3.5 billion in the northeast, while UK foreign direct investment in the Kingdom reached $13 billion by 2023.
